Brevity

Saying more with less

It has always amused me that the guy who wrote “Brevity is the soul of wit” wrote 37 plays and well over a million words. However, William Shakespeare was right—a short, high-impact message is more likely to move people to action… if it’s the right message.

Some pointers:

Start with the goal or bottom line. “If we do X, this job get done faster.” “If we do Y, we all get the results we want.”

Be positive. Some people want the “confetti and balloons” delivery with energy and enthusiasm (e.g., “Woohoo!”), while other people prefer that the speak keep the decibel level down, but still have a quiet energy (e.g. “This is going to be great.”).

Be authentic and trustworthy. Don’t fake enthusiasm. Don’t try to sell people on an idea you don’t believe in yourself. If you need to get your team on-board with an idea that has come down from the C-suite, make sure you buy in first. To do this, either as questions (e.g., “Why are we doing this?”) until you see the value of the idea, or come up with a way to make implementation in your part of the company a process you can genuinely endorse (e.g., this isn’t an initiative I would have prioritized, but here’s how we can get a “silver lining” for our team.)

Be funny or clever, and your message will stick longer. Truman once said, “Leadership is the ability to get men to do what they don’t want to do, and like it.”